Rage Against the Phantom
by ArcherSceptile
Summary: This is a one-shot following the Phantom Planet series finale. Danny's identity is now public, but will the newfound fame affect his relationship with Sam?


**A/N:** This is my first fic! I hope everyone enjoys reading it, and please leave a review.

* * *

The half-ghost savior of Amity Park flew over his town, invisible so people didn't see him and start taking pictures. He had enough of the fame really, and he thought that saving the world from a giant asteroid six months ago wasn't really enough to warrant the constant hounding of Amity Park News Crews in his public life as Danny Phantom and his private life as Danny Fenton. He thought of moving away, to a part of the world who didn't know that both Dannys were two halves of the same person, but quashed that notion because he knows his city needs him. His friends and family needs him. She needs him. And even though Sam and he hadn't talked in two months, he still felt his heart pining for her. He lands on the roof of Casper High, and and just sits there, waiting for a moment that he thinks will never come. After about an hour, his cell phone rings, and he sees it's Tucker, the Mayor of Amity Park.

"Yes Mr. Mayor?" Danny says sardonically into the phone.

"You're thinking about her, aren't you?" Tucker asks knowingly. "You know you could just pop over to her house and apologize."

"Why should I apologize?" Danny says, his temper rising.

"Because dude, both of you were wrong. You need to show her you grew up though and can take responsibility for that." Tucker says, choosing his words carefully. "She still loves you, you know. But someone has to make the first move. And the longer you wait, the less time you guys will have in the future."

"Tuck, you've really gotten wiser. Thanks." Danny says, a real smile gracing his face for the first time in the past two months.

"Anytime. Why don't you come by and we'll have a few sodas and discuss a plan." Tucker says.

"Sure Tuck, I'll fly right-" Danny starts.

"MAYOR FOLEY! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE IN A MEETING AN HOUR AGO!" An unknown voice shouts at Tucker.

"Sorry Danny, rain check?" Tucker asks

"You know it. I'll talk to you later." Danny affirms, hanging up the phone. As he stands on the roof of the high school, he starts to reminisce about what happened two months ago.

* * *

" _You're forgetting you have a team?" Sam asked as she, Tucker and Jazz finally made it to the battle site, about a mile outside of Amity Park._

" _Well if you guys want me to slow down and let the bad guy get away, I'll be sure to wait for backup. I'm sure the news will get a kick out of- oof!" Danny started as The Box Ghost landed a solid kick to Danny's head causing him to sprawl on the ground. Sam ran to Danny's side to check on him._

" _Hel-lo, trying to argue with my boyfriend here!" Sam said dismissively to The Box Ghost. "You ok?" She grabbed his arm, trying to pull him up._

" _Y-Yea, I'm fine. Thanks." Danny said, rising to his knees._

" _Ghosts these days, no sense of decency. We don't even get in pre-fight banter anymore." Sam noted._

" _Right? Plasmius made it into an art before-" Danny started, using Sam to rise to his feet._

" _I am The Box Ghost!" He interrupted in his normal high pitched voice. His voice dropped a few octaves as he added the next part: "Beware!" He shot a blue ghost energy blast from his hand, blasting the already stunned Danny, as he rose to his feet. Danny let go of Sam and hit the ground again. Sam stepped forward, brandishing the Jack o' Nine Tails. She fired it at The Box Ghost, who phased through the ground to avoid it. Sam looked around confused, not noticing the ghost that was slowly getting solid behind her. As she noticed the shadow, The Box Ghost swung at her. Before his fist could connect with her face, The Box Ghost was enveloped in a pale blue light, and slowly got dragged towards a metal cylinder that Jazz held in her hands._

" _Looks like this is all… wrapped up." Jazz said excitedly, as Tucker and Sam shared a groan._

" _Wouldn't 'boxed up' be a much better pun?" Tucker asked. Sam shot him a "don't encourage her" look and he kept his further comments to himself. A quiet moan could be heard a few feet away as Danny slowly got to his feet. "Dude, you just got beat by The Box Ghost. Luckily the news crew didn't catch that." Tucker grinned, and clapped Danny on the back, who shouted in pain. Tucker's hand recoiled as he noticed the green blood flowing from Danny's back._

" _Danny, you're hurt." Sam said, concern in her voice._

" _I-I'm fine." Danny said shortly. "No thanks to the rest of you." As he reached his stamina limit, he changed back into his human form, his snow-white hair turned jet black, his emerald green eyes turned into a sapphire blue, and his black jumpsuit with a stylized logo transformed into a white t-shirt with a red circle and blue jeans. The hole in the back of the shirt was still there and was still bleeding however._

" _You're blaming us?" Sam asked incredulously._

" _If you hadn't of distracted me, I wouldn't have gotten hit!" Danny shouted, his eyes briefly flashing green._

" _Yea, you were doing such a bang up job by yourself." Sam said sarcastically. Tucker and Jazz backed away, as this was the third fight between the couple in the past month or so. "The Box Ghost outsped you. That already should have been a sign that something was different. But no, the great Danny Phantom's ego is too big to notice that!"_

" _Jealous that I'm getting the fame? I'd expect that from Tucker, not you." Danny shot acidly. Tucker briefly got angry but calmed down after realizing commenting will make it worse._

" _I'm not jealous. I was just under the impression we were a team. We have been doing this for a long time, and you're throwing it away for some camera time?" Sam started getting more and more angry at Danny's apparent lack of care for the situation._

" _Sam, I'm a hero. I saved the world. And the town loves me for once. I don't have to worry about Dash bullying me, or my parents hunting me. Everything is good. Why can't you be happy all of a sudden?" Danny asked, confused at the situation._

" _Because Danny, you're pushing us - me - away." Sam quietly said. "And I don't want to lose you."_

" _Sam, you're not going to lose me. I'm just a full time hero now, so things are going to take time to adjust." Danny said._

" _You're missing the point. You're different. You've been too busy to talk to me, and when we do talk, things are awkward and forced. There hasn't been as much fun between us." Sam finally stated._

" _Sam, I don't understand. I thought things were good between us. I needed some space before just because all of this was so overwhelming, but I told you about that and it was only about a few days." Danny countered._

" _You don't get it! Danny we've been there for you from the beginning of you becoming a hero. All the good and the bad. We've been there when everybody hated you, or when everybody ridiculed you, or when no one talked to you! I was there! Tucker was there! And you're showing us your gratitude by pushing us away. By pushing me away. I understand you're a hero. You've always been. But you letting this go to your head is not the Danny I fell in love with." Sam exclaimed, tears in her eyes._

" _Sam, I'm sorry. Things are gonna be a little different for a bit, but they'll get back to normal. I promise." Danny reached out to wipe the tears forming in her eyes, and gave her a weak smile. She started to return the smile, but then a new idea flitted across her face._

" _Are we all still a team? Or is this now a Danny Phantom solo show?" Sam asked._

" _We're always a team." Danny said. "But I will need to have some solo time for ratings and stuff." As he said it, he knew he messed up. Fury darkened Sam's face._

" _I knew it! I knew you didn't understand! This is all business and ratings to you!" Sam swiped his hand away and started to storm off. Danny stayed rooted to the spot, unsure of what to do._

" _Sam!" Danny said as she started to walk off. As he started to take a step, fatigue flashed across the half ghost's face, and the ground suddenly rushed up to meet him as he blacked out._

* * *

"Sam." Danny exhales. He pushes off the ground and starts flying. Danny figures out what he has to do. He gets up from the roof, and flies toward Sam's house. As he gets there, he hovers over the house, unsure of his approach. He could easily just phase through the wall and talk to her, but he wants to respect her space. As he plans his best approach, he notices he can see his breath. A bright blue wisp of air emerges from his mouth, and points slightly to the left, indicating a ghost nearby. Danny facepalm, upset that whoever this ghost is, interrupted his plan to apologize. "Ok, I know you're there, let's just make this fast, I got things to do." Suddenly, he hears a familiar laugh, followed by one word: "BEWARE!"

Danny abruptly turns his head to the source of the word, and sees The Box Ghost, back from his earlier trip to the Ghost Zone just hours ago. The normal joking look on his face is gone, replaced by one of anger. And strangely enough, he now has an eye patch over his left eye. "You did this to me!" He exclaims, charging at Danny.

"Me? All I did was send you back to the Ghost Zone. Pretty standard stuff." Danny replies, dodging the airborne tackle. "I don't see what I-" He cringes as he realizes what he just said. "Too soon?"

"Your cylindrical prison had Skulker in it, who promised me if he ever saw me again, he'd destroy me." The Box Ghost says, firing another blue energy blast at Danny's side. All the commotion started bringing a crowd to start watching near the Manson household. Two news copters flew overhead too, recording the fight. Stray blasts of green and blue energy fly wildly through the streets, as both of the ghosts try to get the upper hand over the other. As Danny misses a crucial shot with his ghost ray, the Box Ghost capitalizes on it moving in close, sinking his fist in Danny's stomach and unleashing the most powerful energy blast the crowd has seen thus far. Gasping for air, Danny plummets to the ground, creating a small crater where he lands.

"I don't get it… How are you so strong?" Danny asks weakly, hoping to get him monologuing enough to build up the energy to stand.

"There is much you don't know about me. You just know me as the Master of all things Cardboard, but there is so much more I can do!" Box Ghost responds, his left hand glowing purple, as it creates a box construct. He fires the construct at Danny, who instantly jumped out of the way, as much as his body protested the action. Danny looks up at Box Ghost, and takes a deep breath, knowing exactly what he has to do to bring him down.

"Stop this Box Ghost! STOP! THIS! NOWWW!" Danny screams, projecting his voice through his ghostly wail. The green sonic waves repeatedly bombard Box Ghost, knocking him further and further down the street, tearing through the pavement. As his screams start to peter out, his knees buckle and he slowly starts to transform back to human. Dazed, Danny tries to stand, only to fall flat on his face.

The crowd hesitates, unsure of what to do for the half-ghost boy. But one person in the crowd moves forward and scoops up one of Danny's arms, resting half of his weight across her back.

"S-Sam?" Danny says weakly.

"The one and only. Now let's get you out of here." She says, half dragging, half-carrying Danny towards her house. "You're a lot heavier than you look. Maybe lay off Nasty Burger."

"Yea, totally at the top of my to-do list." Danny wheezes. "I need the thermos. Before he gets up." Sam reaches in her side bag, pulling out a thermos. Danny stares at her, perplexed.

"Just because we weren't talking doesn't mean that I suddenly forget all my ghost training." She points out. They head towards where Box Ghost's unconscious body ended up. Sam points the thermos at him and activates it, letting the pale blue beam wash over Box Ghost, bringing him into the thermos. "Now that that's taken care of, you need rest. I'm bringing you to my place." Sam tells him in a tone of voice that lets Danny know arguing is futile.

* * *

Danny wakes up the next morning in Sam's guest bedroom, his healing factor having healed his wounds. He stretches, feeling rejuvenated and makes his way down to the kitchen where Sam is finishing a piece of toast.

"You're finally awake. It's been 16 hours, I was starting to get worried." Sam admits, a small smile on her face.

"Thanks for letting me crash here as I healed. And for dragging me here. And capturing the Box Ghost while I was weak. And-" He cuts himself off, realizing he's talking too much. "I'm gonna just go. Mom and Dad must be worried about me. Or probably are inventing another piece of horribly named tech for me to use." He heads for the door but then stops. "Oh, and Sam?"

"Yea Danny?"

"I'm sor- I mean, Thanks again." He quickly walks out of the door, upset with himself over his inability to apologize to her.

Sam looks at where Danny was standing, a little upset that he didn't stay longer. She was glad they actually talked for a bit. She heads back upstairs, unaware that Danny is still standing in front of her house.

After a few minutes of just standing in front of her house, Danny finally accepts what he should have done a couple months ago. Transforming into a ghost, he phases through her door, seeing that she's no longer in the kitchen. Going back outside, he heads towards her room and sees her sitting on her bed, reading a book. He knocks on her window, and she looks at him, surprise on her face. She turns and opens the window and just looks at Danny in surprise.

"I'm sorry. I was an idiot. A prideful idiot. I was so obsessed with this new fame that I disregarded you. And in my stubbornness I spent the past two months not talking to you. Sam, I'm sorry. I can't just pretend that these things haven't happened. But what I can do is tell you is that I will work on this. I can't believe I put the glory of being a hero over my friends and family. You guys all mean so much to me and I have smoothed things over with them, except for you. I love you Sam." Danny confesses.

"I love you too. And I'm also sorry. I shouldn't have acted so rash and insecure. I know being a hero strains you and stresses you out, and the fact you haven't snapped is pretty incredible. If you need your solo time, I understand. It's just it's been us all as a group for so long, and with Tucker as Mayor and not having as much time, I've just felt we've been drifting apart." Sam responds.

"Are we ok?" Danny asks. Sam, instead of answering, opens her window wider. She jumps out, into Danny's arms, and catches his mouth in a passionate embrace. His initial surprise fades away and he returns her kiss, with just as much passion. As they separate, a bead of saliva connects their lips together for another second. Sam looks Danny in the eye and smiles at him.

"We're not 100%, but we'll get past it." She says, just wanting to move past the fight and completely content floating in Danny's arms.

"I love you." The newly reformed couple says to each other.


End file.
